O Agente Secreto Matt Helm

He's super spy Matt Helm.All the girls love him and all the men envy him.And some want to kill him.In the 1960's they made four Matt Helm movies.The Silencers (1966) is the first one of them directed by Phil Karlson.In this movie Matt Helm's job is to prevent WWIII.Not an easy job to do, except for Matt Helm.Matt Helm movies were James Bond parodies.They did the same Austin Powers did some decades later.And this agent could also sing! The actor who portrayed Matt Helm was super cool Dean Martin.The leading lady of this first movie was portrayed by super sexy Stella Stevens (Gail).Daliah Lavi plays Tina.The singing and dancing beauty Cyd Charisse is Sarita.The movie history has pretty much forgotten these movies.I found The Silencers rather entertaining.Matt Helm movies look very 60's.It's probably the nostalgia that raises the value of these movies.And the super cool Dean Martin.

Good fun. A James Bond spoof, made 30 years before Austin Powers!

Has all the Bond ingredients - debonair leading man, stunningly beautiful women, random plot, weird "when would you ever use that?" gadgets (which then are used!), bloated megalomaniac villains, hero-gets-captured-but-not-killed-instantly-just-so-that-he-can-escape silliness.

Dean Martin is great in the lead role.

The first in the Matt helm series; some say the best of all the James Bond spoofs. Violence and humor are equally mixed, as they are in the Bond pictures. *The Silencers* probably has the most alluring collection of femmes fatales as Hollywood has ever assembled. Klutzy (or is she really?) Stella Stevens, brunette Dahlia Lavi, blond Nancy Kovack, and dancer Cyd Charisse all have important roles. It is not giving away too much to say that of these four women, two are good, two are bad, and three of them suffer the fate of getting shot to death at surprising moments.

A bit of trivia: Beverly Adams, Helm's curvaceous secretary, married Yvres St. Laurent. And deadly Nancy Kovack married conductor Zubin Mehta, the lucky devil. Kovack, clad in only her high heeled shoes and one of Martin's white shirts, tries to seduce him into coming back to work for ICE, his old outfit. It is perhaps the most erotic three minute scene in any spy movie.

Yep, that's the premise, and the beginning to the silliest spy series, before a certain dentally-challenged International Man of Mystery arrived.

Dean Martin starred as Matt Helm, the lead character in a series of novels by Donald Hamilton. The books were serious spy adventures; but, there is nothing serious about the film series. Dean plays it tongue-in-cheek, often making fun of his own image and rivalry with fellow Rat Packer Frank Sinatra. The films are filled with strange characters and silly gadgets.

Martin has fun with the role and keeps the film rolling along, but Stella Stevens makes it memorable. She is sexy as hell, but is such a lovable klutz that she dominates every scene. Victor Buono gets to chew the most scenery this side of his Batman appearances.

The gadgets make James Bond look like a documentary: a gun that shoots backward unless the trigger is pushed, exploding buttons, a station wagon with a fold down bed and bar, and Helm's many household appliances.

These films were anything but serious, but this one is very entertaining. The films tended to get worse with each new entry, but most of the elements work well here. If you are looking for serious spy cinema, try 007 or Harry Palmer. If you want some goofy fun, try this.

My favorite part of this "tongue-in-cheek" espionage flick, is when Dean Martin, convinced that Stella Stevens has the micro-film tape on her, completely rips her dress off of her, leaving the sexy Stevens standing there in her bra, gartered-panties, nylons and high-heels. Great scene !! I'm sure it was Stella Stevens who kept the attention of male viewers throughout this silly movie. Sure , there were other attractive women in the movie. But Stevens was tops !! Dean martin, pretty much being himself as opposed to acting, was entertaining to a degree. However, it was Stella Stevens who stole the show. I didn't even consider being annoyed by her "flighty" character. She's just too damn pretty.